Marshall County fiscal court adopts 2025 tax-rate order after rejecting higher Extension Office increase

Marshall County Fiscal Court on Sept. 15 adopted its 2025 tax-rate order after a contentious decision to disapprove a proposed higher rate for the county Extension Office.

Unidentified Speaker 7, the county treasurer, read the detailed tax-rate order and certified Marshall County assessed values across categories, including real estate and motor-vehicles, before the court voted to adopt the rates. The court set the county general fund real-estate rate at 7.5 cents per $100 assessed value, the tangible-personal property rate at 7.8 cents and the motor-vehicle rate at 11.2 cents.

“These amounts were approved by the fiscal court,” Unidentified Speaker 7 said while reading the ordinance language and certified totals for assessed values. The treasurer’s reading also referenced state law underpinning the court’s authority, including the KRS citations read aloud during the session.

The adoption came after a separate debate over a proposed 2.5-cent real-estate rate for the Marshall County Extension Office. Unidentified Speaker 4 told colleagues he had received multiple calls opposing a tax increase and said he could not support raising taxes further. “I just don’t think we can raise taxes,” Unidentified Speaker 4 said during discussion. Unidentified Speaker 6 echoed concern for taxpayer sentiment and noted the court’s authority and limits under state law.

Following a brief recess and review by county attorneys, the court voted to disapprove the proposed 2.5-cent rate for the Extension Office and instead approved the compensating rate option for that district. Unidentified Speaker 1 noted the compensating-rate choice would provide roughly $66,000 in additional revenue to the district based on the figures before the court.

During the hearing members emphasized that a growing assessed base — which Unidentified Speaker 1 said rose to about $2.8 billion countywide after recent reassessments — had allowed the court to reduce overall rates without forgoing revenue from base growth. “That growth we’ve seen…the reassessments…has enabled us to be able to do what we’ve done,” Unidentified Speaker 1 said.

The treasurer’s full reading of the order included assessed values and levies for special districts and directed that the order be published in the Tribune-Courier within 30 days, with the order effective upon passage and publication.

The court passed the tax-rate order by voice vote after additional clarifying discussion about compensating rates and which taxing units fall under county jurisdiction. Several speakers noted that school districts, fire departments and some cities are outside the fiscal court’s rate-setting authority.